[A… banana serve?!]
[Unbelievable! Absolutely stunning! Akashi Asuka, in a moment where Aoba Johsai was falling behind, boldly took a risk, and it paid off! He just launched an incredible banana serve that curved spectacularly across the court!]
[That ball slipped past Mujizaka's entire left flank straight from midcourt. Clearly, none of the Mujizaka players saw it coming! Their defense didn't even have time to react, Aoba Johsai scores with ease.]
[3 to 4!]
[That's the third point this set scored by Akashi Asuka, Aoba Johsai's ace. In fact, he's the only one who's scored so far for his team.]
The commentary box was practically vibrating with excitement. The commentator's voice soared, and if the camera zoomed in any closer, viewers might've even seen flecks of spit flying from his mouth.
But that reaction was completely understandable, after all, this was a banana serve.
In volleyball, this kind of serve is a rare spectacle, commonly referred to as a "miracle move." Curve serves are already difficult to execute, but a banana serve, with its extreme arc and unpredictability, is in a class of its own.
And this wasn't just about technique. Pulling off a banana serve required a hefty dose of luck, too.
The audience erupted.
"Whoaaa! That was insane!"
"What kind of serve was that?! I didn't know volleyball could curve that much!"
"I can't believe he just pulled that off in the middle of a national tournament! That's insane…"
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Even Mujizaka's players were wide-eyed, expressions stunned like they'd just seen a ghost.
Sure, they'd heard of banana serves before, but seeing one in a high-stakes official match? This was a first.
Still, they didn't stay shocked for long.
Because Akashi Asuka was already preparing for his second serve.
This time, the Mujizaka team was on high alert. They'd learned their lesson. And they quickly noticed that Akashi's serve had some subtle differences compared to their own ace, Wakatsu Kiryu.
So now they were ready, or so they thought.
The next second,
Boom!
A sound like a thunderclap exploded across the gym. Mujizaka's libero saw only a blur flash before his eyes, and before he could even react, a massive force slammed into him head-on.
In an instant,
He was blown off his feet, ball and body flung backward.
The gym went dead silent.
Mujizaka's players stared in disbelief at their libero, Haruma Bishin, now sprawled on the floor in the back row. For a moment, they couldn't even process what had just happened.
Bishin himself was stunned. Then, as he slowly regained his senses, his face turned deathly pale.
"What… what the hell was that?"
He replayed the moment in his mind. That serve had been completely different from the first.
If the first serve had been all about power and curve, then this one carried something else, a presence. Something raw and overwhelming, like a beast baring its fangs.
In that split second before impact, he had a chance to receive it.
But just as he reached out, it was like something wild slammed into him, his entire body froze in instinctive fear. And that hesitation had sealed his fate, sending him flying with the ball.
Swallowing hard, Bishin looked nervously across the court to the baseline.
"…What is that guy?
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"Is this Akashi's true nature?"
Back on the bench, Oikawa Tooru stared at the court with wide eyes. It was like he was seeing Akashi Asuka for the very first time.
He had always thought Akashi's greatest strengths were his raw power and vertical leap. But now… now he realized just how wrong he'd been.
Akashi's style wasn't just strong, it was savage.
True strength targets the enemy.
But savagery? It spares no one, not even allies.
That last serve didn't just terrify Mujizaka's libero. Even Aoba Johsai's front-row players looked pale and shaken.
Because in that moment, they'd felt it again, that same bone-deep fear they'd experienced during the team's first-year initiation match, when Akashi first revealed his monstrous side.
"…So all this time, it was me holding him back–" Oikawa murmured under his breath. "And now, after being set free by Sanashita… his true power is awakening again."
He could tell: this wasn't about his own absence from the court.
Akashi hadn't been driven to "exceed his limits" because of frustration or responsibility.
It was Ryuhei Sanashita who had finally unlocked the hidden gate buried deep within Akashi Asuka.
And for a setter, that truth… was a bitter pill to swallow.
"Tch. And this is why I hate that damn brat."
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In the blink of an eye, Aoba Johsai tied the score from three points down.
4 to 4.
As the numbers evened out, both the court and the stands erupted in unified chants of a single name:
"Akashi Asuka!"
"Akashi Asuka!"
"Akashi Asuka!"
The deafening chorus pushed Akashi's name to new heights of fame, and among the crowd, one person smiled with glowing pride,
Akashi Kana.
"As expected of my little brother–" she whispered.
"He's really making the Akashi name proud."
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The match resumed.
Akashi's third serve didn't quite land as cleanly, he sent it out of bounds.
4 to 5.
But on the very next play, when Mujizaka served and Aoba Johsai regained possession, Akashi once again leapt into action.
Receiving a perfect toss from Sanashita, he launched into a back-row spike.
Boom!
The ball rocketed past the fingertips of one of Mujizaka's twin towers, Nozomu, and crashed hard into the court.
"Damn it! How is his hitting point that high?!"
Nozomu's face twisted in frustration. Akashi had spiked the ball from the back row, and still managed to attack over his head.
For a middle blocker, it was nothing short of an insult.
"That new setter…" Mujizaka's own setter, Michiru Usuri, narrowed his eyes at Sanashita. "He seems to really understand Aoba Johsai's No. 8."
"Huh? Isn't it normal for a setter to know their ace?"
"No, I mean… this substitute setter seems to know him better than the starting one. Every single toss hits Akashi's exact max jump point, perfectly."
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